Road to Rookies Cup 2016 initiative by Suzuki India

Motorcycle racing is still in a nascent stage in India. A lack of local tracks, funding and a proper racing series that acts as a feeder to MotoGP or any other world series being the core issue. The crippling lack of technical expertise, support and a negligible national interest in motorsport has left aspiring racers facing a very long and hard road to international success. In an effort to bridge this gap, Red Bull Racing and Suzuki have announced a partnership called the ‘Road to Rookies Cup’ aimed at providing young Indian riders in the 13-17 age group a fabulous chance to quickly progress onto the international racing scene.

The Road to Rookies Cup 2016 is intended to create a structured program that would chart out a path that takes young Indian riders to the international arena, culminating in the chance to compete in the Red Bull Rookies Cup. Based on their performance in other motorsport events such as the one make races, the organizers will select 10 riders to participate in the Road to Rookies Cup. The participants will be coached by mentors from around the world to hone their riding skills. The two best riders will be sent to Spain for further coaching. If the riders successfully complete their training, they will go on to participate in the Red bull Rookies Cup. The Red Bull Rookies cup is a support series for MotoGP that acts as a feeder series to the Moto3 championship, with the winner of the Red Bull Rookies Cup getting a direct entry into the Moto3 championship.

K Rajini, the winner of the 2015 Malaysian Superbike Challenge, will be one of the mentors at the Road to Rookies Cup program. He opines that this is a great opportunity for young riders who want to make it to the top, as it has a sponsored and structured program coupled with the proper coaching and mentoring. The great expense that motorsport entails makes it difficult for youngsters to successfully secure what they need to even get started. He is happy that there is an initiative like the Road to Rookies Cup in India, giving youngsters an opportunity he never had. He had to put in a lot of hard work alone to become the multiple championship winner that he is today.

Aras Gibieza, the famous stunt rider was at the event to show his support for this program. Rajini and Gibieza raced for a couple of laps around the go-kart track at the ECR speedway in Chennai to demonstrate their skills and put up a good show for the spectators.